How These Public School Teachers Made $4.4 Million Selling Lesson Plans Onlinehttp://www.businessinsider.com/teachers-made-millions-selling-lesson-plans-2013-4/comments
en-usWed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 -0500Fri, 09 Dec 2016 12:39:05 -0500Megan Rose Dickeyhttp://www.businessinsider.com/c/51948ab069bedd0e4200000fweb hostingThu, 16 May 2013 03:28:48 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51948ab069bedd0e4200000f
five things pensioners making utilization of for a mortgage ought to remember web hosting <a href="http://www.dancome.org" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://www.dancome.org</a>http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175d73deab8ea7505000005MollyMon, 22 Apr 2013 20:35:09 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175d73deab8ea7505000005
Enjoy.... <a href="http://www.classroomconfections.com/2013/04/you-own-everything-i-do-said-no-teacher.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://www.classroomconfections.com/2013/04/you-own-everything-i-do-said-no-teacher.html</a>http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175ba2b69bedd6c46000008Margaret WhisnantMon, 22 Apr 2013 18:31:07 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175ba2b69bedd6c46000008
infrequentguest, you weren't a very good student, were you?http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175505469beddd821000017dugMon, 22 Apr 2013 10:59:32 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175505469beddd821000017
$56K a year for 9 months of work is actually a really decent salary. People always forget the three months taken off every year where many teachers take jobs for additional income.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175404becad043f05000008nycMon, 22 Apr 2013 09:51:07 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5175404becad043f05000008
"... 1.8 million teachers, _who_ have collectively sold ..."http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51753b31ecad04a87600001cMargaret WhisnantMon, 22 Apr 2013 09:29:21 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51753b31ecad04a87600001c
Teachers have NOT failed the students of this country! We work with what parents send us, and then we have to return them to the same set of parents (or whoever is raising them) at the end of the day. Actually, teachers have worked miracles with the students of this country, and we have no intention of doing anything less.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51752f89eab8ea4c67000011Margaret WhisnantMon, 22 Apr 2013 08:39:37 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51752f89eab8ea4c67000011
I taught for 30 years. I worked on the job site from 7:30 to 3:30 Monday-Friday, except on those days when we had teacher's meeting that lasted until 5:00 and those days when I had to go back to school for meetings, games, etc. which ended my day of "teaching" around 9:30. Most afternoons, I spent 2 to 4 more hours grading papers and getting materials together for the next day. My weekends were also packed with more school work--mostly creating my own teaching resources. Occasionally I took a few hours off. And those "summer vacation weeks?" Those weren't vacations. They were periods of unemployment! I had a job, but my employer chose not to employ me for part of the year. Expect for the last five years I taught, I ALWAYS found a summer job to make ends meet. For two of those umployment periods, I actually worked two jobs. Packed in between were those "big projects" that I wanted to put together for my next group of students.
When my monthly check arrived, money had been deducted to fund the retirement benefits that I now receive without guilt! During my time in the classroom, with a conservative estimate of 70 hours per week of work time, I worked for less money than my friends who were employed in offices. I am not complaining!! I loved my job as a teacher. It was where I belonged. I still can't imagine myself in any other profession.
Thanks to TpT, I'm still connected to the profession that I love! Today, I work just as hard and devote a 40+ hour week to my encore career using what I have learned to write resources for the new generation of dedicated, super busy teachers and their students.
You have to be a teacher to understand what it means to be a teacher.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51748b6969bedd7445000013dknolaSun, 21 Apr 2013 20:59:21 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51748b6969bedd7445000013
People don't become teachers to become millionaires. 50K is a good salary for any teacher and that's higher end. The idea of these "teachers" selling Lesson Plans makes me want to puke. What are the lazy 'teachers' doing for their money? What makes them qualified to be a teacher?http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51747b0269bedddb1b000020Amber Sun, 21 Apr 2013 19:49:22 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51747b0269bedddb1b000020
Actually lawmakers, parents who do nothing but entertain/ignore their children and people like you are an embarrassment of this country.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517463a269bedd076b000001Give me a breakSun, 21 Apr 2013 18:09:38 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517463a269bedd076b000001
Seriously, do these teachers listen to themselves?
The article says the average pay is $56k/year. But that's "near poverty" and despite getting school vacations and summers off, they're "vacation-less".
Most of the rest of us are lucky to get 3 weeks of vacation per year. If salaried, we don't work a 40-hour week - it's usually a lot more than that. And our salaries aren't glorious, and we don't get guaranteed pensions.
And yet 13 people thumbed up that boneheaded comment without even the slightest criticism. Gee, could they have all been teachers??http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5174389769bedd727d00000cMichelle (The 3AM Teacher)Sun, 21 Apr 2013 15:05:59 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5174389769bedd727d00000c
I think what you might not understand is that teachers create these resources on their own time. There is no way any teacher has time...on the job.. to create these resources. Also, required lesson plans are not the same as teaching resources. Lesson plans refer to standards and what standards will be taught and how those standards will be assessed. School districts do NOT (in most cases) provide lesson plan materials and resources for teachers....which is why TpT is generating the money they are. In the "olden days" we teachers would have to purchased $20.00 books from big education companies and we might use 2 or 3 of the resources within each book. Now, teachers are providing materials and resources for lessons (standards) that must be taught in the classroom, which enriches and improves the quality of each lesson.
I really do wish that people would stop referring to lesson plans as resources... they are completely different things. Deanna Jump is an absolute sweetheart and works her tail off!! Working at a private school, you can imagine that her salary is not something to brag about and I know that she does NOT like every one thinking that she makes millions every year. It takes a long time to work up to that (most obviously have not) and the sales that are disclosed to the public are her over-all sales since 2008, when she first started TpT. Also.... When taxes are taken out of that chunk.... she is not grossing nearly what every one is posting all over the place. She is a hard-worker and she (and other TpT sellers) should be honored for their research, their work and their dedication to improving the quality of education on the classrooms. Research companies gross millions and have been for years, but no one ever complains about their earnings..which hardly ever impacts education in a positive way. These TpT sellers (including myself) are impacting education where it matters most... in the classroom and with your children. You should be thankful for these hard-working men and women like Deanna Jump, who are improving the quality of education for your children. Plus, WE ALL (most of us) HOLD MULTIPLE MASTERS DEGREES in various areas of education, research and curriculum development. I am thankful for TpT, what Paul and his team has done for me and my family and for the amazing teachers who are making education better by providing REAL resources, QUALITY resources, for teachers in the classroom. Most seem to forget about education on the most basic level... the fundamental level and where all the magic happens... IN THE CLASSROOM. Teachers who are selling on TpT are not sitting at their desks, creating resources from the school computers on school time... those who do should very well be ashamed of themselves...I agree...but most would never have time. I wish there was a program that would allow the public and the faces for education in the government to have to spend a week in a classroom and take on all of the roles and responsibilities that teachers are faced with on a daily basis. Teaching is not the most glamorous job, but it is the most important job in any country. Without teachers, we would not be the country we are today. Without innovating ideas from brilliant minds, education would still be repetitive lessons taught straight from a book. I am no longer teaching at this time, but I am proud to have educated our future and proud to be an innovator on TpT.
Michelle
The 3AM Teacher
<a href="http://the3amteacher.blogspot.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://the3amteacher.blogspot.com/</a>http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5174275c6bb3f73464000033MollySun, 21 Apr 2013 13:52:28 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5174275c6bb3f73464000033
...What you are saying would equate to you telling a cop he couldn't do 'off duty' work in a security field in order to help support his family. Ahhhhhh, now you see, it simply doesn't make sense what you are saying.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51741e4beab8ea861b000002AnonymousSun, 21 Apr 2013 13:13:47 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51741e4beab8ea861b000002
56k for 9 months?? Where is that?? I don't even make 30K after teaching for 6 years!!! And as for the 9 months comment, we work more hours in 9 months than most do in 12.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51741390eab8ea9478000013Deanna JumpSun, 21 Apr 2013 12:28:00 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51741390eab8ea9478000013
"Lesson Plans" doesn't describe the resources that are sold on TPT. We are creating resource books and activities for teachers to use to enhance their curriculum. These materials are created during the evening and weekends when we are at HOME. There is no time to work on these materials at school. Believe me if the school districts had to pay us for the actual hours we spend doing the work they require us to do they would be paying us a fortune. I don't know any teacher who doesn't work way beyond the contracted hours. The district certainly doesn't deserve ANY of the money I make selling MY materials that I make on my OWN time. Go shadow a teacher for a day or two before you speak about something you obviously know nothing about!http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517405b2ecad04702f000035RachelSun, 21 Apr 2013 11:28:50 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517405b2ecad04702f000035
Well, I agree that teachers do not work 40-hour weeks! I am a teacher and I work much more than 40 hours a week. If I include the extra two to three hours I stay at school (after I am allowed to leave), and then the grading and supplemental activities I create on my own time once I get home, I average around 70 hours a week! As for the summer, it is nice to have a little break, but I also spend A LOT of time on school stuff! Most teachers quit in their first five years because of the work load and little support we actually receive! Those of us who remain teaching love it, but it is an incredible amount of work.
I am actually nowhere close to making that 56 K average everyone keeps mentioning. I am more than 20,000 below that and I have a masters and have my national boards. I was in the top of my high school and college class with honors and a 4.0 grade point average. To hear one other commenter say that teachers are in the bottom third of their class is a joke. That person is making a stereotype based on unfounded evidence. I could've went to almost any college I wanted and chose any profession I desired, but I chose education because I wanted to make a difference in students' lives. The fact that my husband, who does not have a college degree and works at a factory at the bottom level, makes more than myself, who holds a masters degree, is crazy. I do not know of another profession that requires a college degree that makes as little as teachers make. I am also in my 7th year of teaching and my pay has been frozen since my first year of teaching; however, my insurance premiums increase annually along with food, gas, etc. Most of my retirement comes from money I am putting in myself. Perhaps, it is just my state that has cut back on pensions or it is because I am not with a Union? Either way, I do get a little pension, but nowhere the amount I would need to retire after 30 years and be able to live until I died. Most of that comes from my 401K.
On top of the very little I make, I have to deduct the amount I spend on my classroom each year. Sure, I get to claim $250 of that on my taxes, but if you can find a teacher who only spends that each year, I would be shocked. I have spent, on average, $2,000 a year of my own money to buy books, supplies, etc for my classroom. Now, I do expect that to go down now that I have a lot of the stuff I need to have a successful classroom (books, organizational materials, manipulatives for math, etc). Of course, I will always have to buy supplies and other needed items each year, so those expenses will never go away.
I am a seller on TpT. I am nowhere close to making what these "top sellers" earn, but it has provided me an additional source of income which has been a true blessing. I do not create lesson plans-all teachers create their own lesson plans. I create supplemental activities for the curriculum (since the school districts do not provide anything). I spend at least 50 hours on each of my products using my own time and materials (and, no, I did not include this average into how much time I spend on "school stuff" each week). If people do not believe I should be compensated for this work, that is ridiculous and sad. I finally have extra income to start paying off debts, and maybe I will actually be able to take a small vacation this year!http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5173ff7beab8ea2d4e00001dRobert TolmachSun, 21 Apr 2013 11:02:19 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5173ff7beab8ea2d4e00001d
This article underscores the tremendous financial burden on teachers, who spend their own money on classroom resources. An emerging nonprofit is helping. Teachers visit <a href="http://ClassWish.org" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://ClassWish.org</a> to create wish lists. Visitors donate, and materials are sent right to the teacher at no cost. And a sponsor is now funding a big giveaway: more than 100 teachers will each receive $1,000 of funding for classroom supplies. Share with your favorite teacher at <a href="http://ClassWish.org" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://ClassWish.org</a>http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5173525169beddfc2700000bChuckSat, 20 Apr 2013 22:43:29 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5173525169beddfc2700000b
Most people cant raise a family on a single income any more. The fact that you cant isn't really a surprise.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51734cdfecad04fa46000001Deanna JumpSat, 20 Apr 2013 22:20:15 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51734cdfecad04fa46000001
I don't know ANY teacher who only works 9 months. Every teacher I knows works evenings, weekends and during the summer preparing lessons, grading papers and making the classroom a wonderful place to learn. You must no know any teachers.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51734c45ecad047e40000017Deanna JumpSat, 20 Apr 2013 22:17:41 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51734c45ecad047e40000017
All sellers on Teachers Pay Teachers receive a 1099 and we pay taxes on all of our earnings. No worries! :)http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172cb32eab8eaeb36000004Jay JacobsonSat, 20 Apr 2013 13:06:58 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172cb32eab8eaeb36000004
Nice job aiding the jerks who own the Chronicle smearing the public schools. I guess you couldn't find any part of a million positive stories.
And try this one, 'How about the billions of dollars the Catholic Church has pocketed by never paying property tax and excluding anybody who doesn't pony up for their religious propaganda.'
I'll bet the only reason you think of yourself as a writer or a business person is because of at least 8 public school teachers who made that possible without making a dime.
Hope you are proud of yourself.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172c7606bb3f7ba3d00002eOveraveragingSat, 20 Apr 2013 12:50:40 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172c7606bb3f7ba3d00002e
Look everybody! AVERAGE !!!! The magic word !!!
What does the "average" American do? How much should anyone be allowed to make, compared to the average American? What basis should be used to make that determination?
Here's a thought experiment for you. Take a large american corporation. Add up all of its salaries and bonuses and benefits. Divide by the number of people in the corporation. You now have the average for that company. Now do that with a different company. Are the two averages equal? Why not? Why is one group getting more than another? How is that possible? Oh, the horror!
Now take that first company again. Eliminate everyone below the management level. Now calculate the average of the remaining (i.e. management) employees -- how much greater is the average employee of the management-only version of the company paid, versus the management-and-employees version? By the way, this is in fact a very plausible scenario given outsourcing and offshoring. Did you find that the management-only version of the company got paid at least 10 times what the management-and-employees version did? Are there American companies where that number is more like 50 times the previous average? Is that ok with you? If not, maybe you don't like the free market.
Now look at the federal government. Over the years since 1995, 85% of federal jobs have been outsourced to contractors. That 85% was almost entirely from the lower graded jobs, in other words the "employees" in our previous, private industry scenarios. Those remaining jobs are almost entirely "management". How much more than the average government employees do you think the average government managers made? In private industry, it was 10 times, 50 times, or even more. According to the Heritage Foundation, it is only 2 times. But the Heritage Foundation does not say it that way -- they say it "feds make twice, on average, as much as the average american"!!!!! How come so little? In private industry it would work out to at least 10 times.
Tired of trying to BS us with that stuff about "average".? Good, because it is meaningless. It is a right wing buzz word, and everybody knows that right wingers don't want to have to really deal with "average".http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172bff46bb3f7de30000017CombinationManSat, 20 Apr 2013 12:19:00 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172bff46bb3f7de30000017
What's the matter? Did the free market that used to pay you more than the gov, and benefit you more than the gov workers, and which you pointed to as the reason why you got paid more, now decided that you should be paid less? So now you don't like the free market. Well, as your fellow traveler CManSB said "you knew it was the free market going in", and now to complain about it is really lame.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172bedfecad04e436000016CombinationManSat, 20 Apr 2013 12:14:23 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172bedfecad04e436000016
Let's c ombine right wing CManSB and right wing fico4444, and give them answers they should be able to get from each other.
fico4444, according to CManSB you knew the pay scales going in, so why didn't you get a government job? Couldn't hack the qualifications? Or are you just bitchin' that your much higher paying job's salary has been cut lately? Well, when the government's gotta sequester, they cut those higher paying jobs first, which is why the private industry folks who work on government contracts are now out the door and facing lower salaries -- the taxpayers can't afford those higher salaries any more.
See, you guys try to make it seem like the gov is so well taken care of, but that's not what the taxpayers are focusing on - the taxpayers are focusing on not being able to afford to support those big salaries that go not to gov employees, but to gov contractors. Last time I had a contractor working for me, he made more than GS-15 even though he was only two years out of college and in no way merited a GS-15 position. Oh, and no, the difference between what he should have been making only two years out of college and GS-15 is not benefits, nowhere near.
Get used to it. It is not government workers who cost you so much money, it is government contractors whose companies want profit. Why should they get a profit? In goverment, it isn't called profit, it is called a bonus -- why should they get a bonus just for doing their jobs? Oh, the free market? The free market justifies that higher pay? Well, the free market now seems to be justifying your lower pay. What? Suddenly dissatisfied with that recently trumpeted free market? You knew it was free market going in.......http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a93e6bb3f76a070000104th Grade TeacherSat, 20 Apr 2013 10:42:06 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a93e6bb3f76a07000010
Good catch! Looks like I got a lower grade for not proofreading it!! Ironic it was in that point....http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a7ca69bedd9618000002Fico watches FoxNewsSat, 20 Apr 2013 10:35:54 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a7ca69bedd9618000002
You watch too much Fox News. These other jobs you speak of don't require advanced degrees. I've heard no complaining about pay. You're imagining this apparently. The point is that Teachers are taking initiative to make their lives better....and you just knock them for using their ideas. If you have kids, I'd love to be a fly on the wall at those parent teacher conferences...I bet you think you're better than your kids teacher...so sad.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a61269bedd560d000009A real teacherSat, 20 Apr 2013 10:28:34 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172a61269bedd560d000009
Your statement couldn't be more incorrect. Teachers don't pick curriculum. The government does. I've been on numerous groups to evaluate publishers products and we have limited choices. We don't get what is best because of cost, so we get a diluted set of materials. I fill in the huge gaps with my own materials and activities. Reaching a variety of learners takes numerous types of resources that are not available. I do not get paid to create lesson plans. We've been instructed to use the ones provided, but it's our choice to generate more effective lessons. Deduction on taxes? That's funny. I can only deduct up to $250. So far this year, I've exceeded $1200 for my 32 kids. This money goes to science materials and other in-class projects. Construction paper? I pay for it. Writing supplies? I pay for them, even for myself.(unless I get a free pen from a publisher)
Public schools are not a money making business...not a good point. You must not have kids. I'm also guessing that you really have no clue about what obstacles public school teachers have to deal with. I do things for my students every day that I'm not obligated to do, but making them responsible for their own learning and creating a passion for becoming a better person is a daily challenge. Try it before you knock down what we do...I bet you'd quit and go back to the job you have now.
Thanks for your support...http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729d8f69bedd1e7b00002adbsmithSat, 20 Apr 2013 09:52:15 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729d8f69bedd1e7b00002a
"We are destined to live near poverty and vacation-less throughout our life."
LOLhttp://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729cc1ecad04ed7c000011dbsmithSat, 20 Apr 2013 09:48:49 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729cc1ecad04ed7c000011
I was convinced right up the the point where you wrote : "you're ignorant comment".http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729c0969bedd1e7b00000afico4444Sat, 20 Apr 2013 09:45:45 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51729c0969bedd1e7b00000a
Teachers always complain how they 'work such long hours' and how they are 'underpaid'. LOL...These arguments are comical...$56K is good money these days in comparison to what the private sector will give you (about $12-15/hr. on average with 0 summer vacation, and 0 benefits).
Ask anyone who's started their own business- I have friends who've gone a decade making $20K- they go deep into debt too...no houses, no new cars, and NO vacation at all....
Government jobs look pretty lucrative. But, shhh...don't let anyone figure that out...http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51728a286bb3f7c849000015joe fordSat, 20 Apr 2013 08:29:28 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51728a286bb3f7c849000015
You missed the point. I was not degrading teachers for using their talents to make money. I was making a point regarding the wording of the statement. If I "share" my sandwich with your, I don't extract money from you in the process. Now if I "sell" you half my sandwich, that's a little more accurate. The statement goes a little far to present teachers as completely altruistic. I would agree if the teachers were to post their lesson plans online for free. Not for $4.4 million. My mother was a teacher and worked very hard. I think they are not prioritized enough in today's world, but then there are 100 other things that are not prioritized correctly todayhttp://www.businessinsider.com/c/51726e636bb3f75b07000027CheeseSat, 20 Apr 2013 06:30:59 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51726e636bb3f75b07000027
"full-time public school teachers make a mere $56,069 per year on average."
First off, teachers do NOT work full-time, 40-hour work weeks and most teachers have several weeks off during the summer. That is not full-time by normal standards. Furthermore, that $56,069 average is HIGHER than the income of the average American who DOES work full-time plus teachers get rich health insurance benefits and when they retire after 30 years they get PAID for the rest of their lives. It's called a pension, haven't you heard of it? Add up the salary, benefits, and pensions and an "average" teacher is making $85,000 - $100,000 per year.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172302069bedd567e00000bBader Sat, 20 Apr 2013 02:05:20 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172302069bedd567e00000b
Get ready to pay the taxhttp://www.businessinsider.com/c/517227baecad049d1e000010LizSat, 20 Apr 2013 01:29:30 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517227baecad049d1e000010
Wow. No words. I feel sorry for you. It must be really miserable to live life so jaded and cynical.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517226e969bedd355e000010LizSat, 20 Apr 2013 01:26:01 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517226e969bedd355e000010
Are you serious? This is almost laughable.
You clearly don't know anything about education or know anyone who teaches. First of all, not every state has a union. Yes...lesson plans ARE a requirement of the job. However, teachers are not selling lesson plans on TpT, they are selling supplemental activities to enhance the curriculum. Which, by the way, no one is forcing anyone to buy.
Teachers DO NOT use taxpayer dollars to buy these supplemental materials (NOT curriculum. Curriculum is provided by the district and is often not enough which is why teachers are spending their own money on additional materials to supplement what is lacking). Furthermore, NO teacher that I know (including myself) gets a deduction for any additional expense. That made me laugh out loud. I've never been reimbursed for purchasing any supplemental materials.
Teachers selling their materials which are made and created on their OWN time are not paid for by the government. You should really educate yourself about things before speaking so vehemently against them.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517224fbeab8ead14500000eInfrequentguestSat, 20 Apr 2013 01:17:47 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517224fbeab8ead14500000e
Christmas bonus? Who gets Christmas bonus anymore? You get two weeks vacation and you want more? You get a pension that is bankrupting this country.
Where does the US get their teachers? Bottom third of college students. Where does Finland get its teachers? Top third. And it is not because of pay. Teachers are well paid in the US until the grave for poor performance and no accountability. (If someone actually looked at the number of days worked by a US public school teacher, they would be alarmed. It is not nine months; it is around 7.5 months. Most people also do not know that all your unused sick days, something in the neighborhood of 12/year are accumulated and paid out in cash upon retirement. Taxpayers are paying teachers for over two weeks per year for not getting sick. That is a "bonus" no other profession receives.)
US uses the GIGO system of education: Garbage In Garbage Out. Explains why almost 50% of the populace is functionally illiterate, or technically inept. Add onto this problem, teachers insistence that students be drugged. Public school teachers and public school administrators have destroyed this country's future. Our only hope is if all of you quit so we could start again.
(BTW, everyone who uses this site is aware you can upvote your comments all night long. You are not fooling anyone.)http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517220caecad04831300000eInfrequentguestSat, 20 Apr 2013 00:59:54 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517220caecad04831300000e
Many families live on less.
Teachers have failed the students and this country. Instead of talking about your low pay, which it is not, you should focus on doing a better job. That would require a teacher to put in work , for example, lesson plans, which you are paid to do.
See how Unicef has ranked our education system:
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/04/18/unicef-u-s-kids-worse-off-than-many-of-their-western-counterparts/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" >http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/04/18/unicef-u-s-kids-worse-off-than-many-of-their-western-counterparts/</a>
Public K-12 teachers are an embarrassment of this country.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51721f8b6bb3f7e302000015Jungle JimSat, 20 Apr 2013 00:54:35 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51721f8b6bb3f7e302000015
"Don't those lesson plans belong to the School District that is paying these teachers? Same as any IP you create while working for Intel, likely belongs to Intel. After all, they paid you for the work."
If the lesson materials were done during classroom work, you might have a case. However if they are done on spare time in the evening no. The school district isn't paying them to develop lesson plans, they are an incidental part of the work. If you write a book in your spare time does that belong to your employer too ?http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51721f3e6bb3f7407f000022InfrequentguestSat, 20 Apr 2013 00:53:18 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51721f3e6bb3f7407f000022
I agree. The teachers and their unions always include lesson plans as a job requirement.
Also, teachers use taxpayer dollars to buy this curriculum. If they go over their budget and use their own money, they get an above the line deduction for the expense.
When does a public school ever generate income? How can a state employee sell work product paid for by the government. The money should be used to reduce taxpayer costs.
Thieves.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720fe469bedd722d000008CManSBFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:47:48 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720fe469bedd722d000008
You chose your profession knowing the pay scale, to complain after the fact and demand more money from taxpayers is disingenuous. Maybe your school district should cut out all the administrators and give that money to the teachers.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720f5369bedd712d000006LizFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:45:23 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720f5369bedd712d000006
If you are very familiar with the site, then you would know that "top sellers" ALSO work extremely hard day in and day out to make creative and top notch products. Their success has nothing to do with the site manager "pushing" their products. They didn't get to the top by accident.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720efbecad04c973000008TPT rocksFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:43:55 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720efbecad04c973000008
Teachers deserve to make as much money as they can. People believe that they are overpaid. I guess we're not allowed to live a comfortable life. We are destined to live near poverty and vacation-less throughout our life. I already work multiple jobs and rarely have the chance to enjoy my "vacation time". I love my teaching career and my students. But I also believe that I can make money, using my knowledge, time, and resources ethically. No one complains about the big time publishers? Their ideas aren't new...just polished and presentable. Ah, but it's their job, right? Well, they exploit our kids and provide less than adequate materials. If I only used what the district gave me, my students would be uninspired to even come to school. I've seen teachers who use TPT and it's amazing to see them share ideas with each other and collaborate on new projects.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720a706bb3f72d6100000a4th Grade TeacherFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:24:32 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720a706bb3f72d6100000a
Try raising a family on that Chuck...Add in horrible benefits and long hours. I work three jobs to make ends meet. I still have to pay for my own graduate classes and get nothing in return. I pay for my own paper, pencils, and many, many other supplies.( Can you name another "profession" that has to do that?...didn't think so.) I work more hours than most jobs. Lame argument saying I only work 9 months....not surprised of the ignorance displayed. I teach on Saturdays, summers, and tutor after school....but wow! It's an easy job, how can anyone complain?http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517208fa6bb3f7e75c00000f4th Grade TeacherFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:18:18 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517208fa6bb3f7e75c00000f
Hey Joe, you must be a CEO of a corporation trying to nickel and dime hard working Americans. I sell on TPT and proud of it. I hold three degrees, including two masters, and I make good use of my skills. I give teachers ready materials that are original and helpful. My time is worth something, isn't yours? It takes money and time to create in my spare time, so I should be compensated. Want to hear what my Christmas Bonus was this year? I got a coffee mug and a bunch of things from the dollar store. Forgive me for trying to take advantage of my wonderful, original ideas.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172082569beddef21000007Jason StevensFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:14:45 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5172082569beddef21000007
I am very familiar with this site and find it very amusing that they constantly push the top "sellers", when the people who work extremely hard day in and day out to make creative and top notch products are never recognized in any way. I am not a user of the site but know many who are and they would all back my feedback. Terrible article in my opinion.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720806ecad0428690000054th Grade TeacherFri, 19 Apr 2013 23:14:14 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/51720806ecad042869000005
To answer your question...no. Teachers create their own materials. You'd be shocked at what the publishers try to pawn off as lessons to educate our kids. As a 4th grade teacher with 15 years experience, I spend countless hours creating, updating, and making my activities meaningful and effective. I rarely use "District supplied" materials. I BUY my supplies with my own money. I create for TPT as well, and I find that it makes me a better teacher. My lessons challenge my students, meet the demands of all the standards required, and make them independent learners, as well as teach how to collaborate with their peers. It's insulting to say that the district should get a cut. My ideas are original, and I pay for clipart, photos, and other designs. I take MY time at home using zero, nada, zilch district resources. TPT buyers pay for my creativity, time, patience and persistence to create powerful learning resources that are ready for classroom use. You're ignorant comment shows how little you respect our profession and you should be ashamed of yourself. I have EVERY right to take full advantage of my talents and skills.
My lessons are not like an IP for Intel. I teach human beings during the day, and in my SPARE time, work more to make my classroom experience fulfilling for students.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517201cb6bb3f77f48000018joe fordFri, 19 Apr 2013 22:47:39 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/517201cb6bb3f77f48000018
"Teachers by nature need to share with each other," I wouldn't exactly call extracting $4.4 million from them exactly "sharing".http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171fd09eab8ea7077000014ChuckFri, 19 Apr 2013 22:27:21 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171fd09eab8ea7077000014
I agree. 56k for nearly 9 months of work is good. I don't know why everyone always talks as if they are paid poorly.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171f8c86bb3f7e14000000cOh boyFri, 19 Apr 2013 22:09:12 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171f8c86bb3f7e14000000c
This article started with a meme that's wrong. Teaching won't put you in the top 10%, that's for sure. But it's financially rewarding and it's even better when you factor in the summer work and the pension & benefits. You can do very, very well for yourself.http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171f507ecad048844000001clearfundFri, 19 Apr 2013 21:53:11 -0400http://www.businessinsider.com/c/5171f507ecad048844000001
Don't those lesson plans belong to the School District that is paying these teachers? Same as any IP you create while working for Intel, likely belongs to Intel. After all, they paid you for the work.
Thus, all that money should go the district. If they wanted to quit their teaching job, create lesson plans on their own, then sell them....well, good for them. But to do it on the taxpayer's bill is flat out wrong.